Thierry de Haan: This was to be expected because tenancy law, as always, seems untouchable. Even if the stakes of these votes were not major, it is nevertheless a shame that the project was refused. Generally speaking, governing subletting with clearer rules would have been beneficial for everyone. We also see that in Europe, as in Spain recently, the population is now directly opposed to platforms which, like Airbnb, are ruining the market. Ultimately, by refusing this project, tenants find themselves further harmed since subletting and the abuses that can go with it contribute to removing housing from the basic supply that is urgently needed.
What about the amendment to the General Law on Development Zones (LGZD), which was also rejected?
Romain Lavizzari: We welcome this result. This project would have granted additional rights to plot owners, who could thus have blocked the construction of housing in areas where densification is envisaged by cantonal planning to meet the needs of the population. As land reserves become increasingly scarce, it is essential to be able to count on the development of housing projects in these areas, and thus put the collective interest first.
Generally speaking, how can we explain that real estate developments, although essential to growth, are so hampered?
R. L.: Real estate planning is a long and complex process that involves multiple steps to which the population may object. These oppositions, which are becoming almost systematic, thus slow down the development of projects which support and accompany the economic and demographic growth of our region. This context makes the act of building increasingly difficult, which contributes to the current housing shortage.
These oppositions become systematic. Building is increasingly difficult and this contributes to the housing shortage
Are we paying the price for our direct democracy, which despite everything generates its share of complications?
R. L.: In part. If our democratic system is unique in the world, and it must of course be preserved, we can today see that it gives rise to certain abuses, which result in particular in the predominance of private interest over public interest. We are required to vote on so many issues that the part of the population who goes to the polls tends to rally behind the sometimes non-pragmatic voting injunctions of the parties.
Does this situation contribute to increasing rents for already scarce housing?
T. d. H.: Yes. Even if, in Geneva, the rents of properties built in development zones are controlled by the State for a certain period, we cannot deny the fact that Geneva rents are among the most expensive in Switzerland. Overall, the serious lack of housing supply is putting the population, and tenants in particular, under pressure.
The serious lack of housing supply puts the population, and tenants in particular, under pressure
What levers can be activated to remedy the problem?
R. L.: There is clearly a lack of a better collective approach to land use planning with a clear and ambitious narrative on all related themes, namely public infrastructure and equipment, mobility and even sustainable development. The different actors involved should present the problem differently to the population, by ceasing to focus primarily on the aspects linked only to the rental issue. The housing shortage is only one element of a much broader societal context, including in particular the maintenance of the framework conditions guaranteeing the prosperity and growth of our region.
On the ground, particularly in urban areas, can building elevations solve the problem?
T. d. H.: Raising buildings is one of the solutions you can count on. But they alone will not solve the housing crisis. Although this approach can be carried out on a large number of properties, it remains impossible to implement it on certain protected heritage buildings. Furthermore, other buildings cannot be used for structural and architectural reasons. Finally, we must also consider the economic aspects linked to this type of project. Because under this law on demolitions, transformations and renovations (LDTR), the prices of new housing installed in attics or in the context of elevations are capped. For an owner, embarking on this type of work does not always constitute a profitable project. This type of project should be encouraged rather than hindered.
In terms of land use planning, what land reserves do we still have?
R. L.: They are diminishing at high speed. We are almost at the end of the achievements of major projects resulting in particular from the downgrading of agricultural areas. To continue to have building land, it is necessary to redefine the sectors of the territory according to their capacity to accommodate new developments, regardless of the nature of the area in which they are located. Once this hierarchy has been achieved, minimum density levels should become legal obligations in order to respond to the principle of inward development, and thus avoid wasting this rare resource that is land. I would like to remind you that this principle was acclaimed by the Swiss population during the second revision of the law on territorial planning (LAT) in 2018.
What can we say about the dynamics between private initiatives and state initiatives linked to land use?
T. d. H.: State ownership of the land generates absurd excesses. While private initiatives are often at the origin of relevant and necessary real estate developments, for example for housing, the right of pre-emption, frequently used by municipalities, causes significant blockages for even essential projects. Finally, this unfortunately encourages the misappropriation of available land resources.
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